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Dear John 10.5.07 CL#9F8CFE.Fdr DEAR JOHN Screenplay By Jamie Linden Based On The Novel By Nicholas Sparks 10.5.07 OVER BLACK: JOHN’S VOICE There's something I want to tell you. OPEN ON: STAFF SARGEANT JOHN TYREE -- who is in his mid-20’s, who has a shaved head beneath his GREEN BERET, and who is completely unaware that two bullets are seconds away from entering him. John looks around the ramshackled room he’s in, then turns and says something we cannot hear to someone we cannot see. JOHN’S VOICE After I got shot, you wanna know the very first thing that entered my mind, right before I blacked out? A BULLET slices into his left shoulder, inches away from his heart. John’s eyes widen, but he’s too stunned to cry out. JOHN’S VOICE Coins. Despite the EERIE SILENCE, a second BULLET hits him in the gut and sends him to his knees. His hand flies to his stomach. In no time at all his fingers are coated with blood. John falls onto his back. His eyes search the dingy ceiling above him. All is still SILENT. Sunlight pours in from a large mortar hole, and as John stares at it, the light ENVELOPES THE SCREEN, AND -- EVERYTHING GOES WHITE. FADE IN ON: John as a LITTLE BOY, standing in front of a sprawling metal contraption that seems to stretch on and on. From his POV it looks like a Rube Goldberg machine. JOHN’S VOICE I’m eight years old again, on a tour of the US Mint, listening to the guide explain how coins are made. The other CHILDREN around John are bored out of their minds. But John is not. John is fascinated. ON A BLANKING PRESS -- --as enormous metal coils are fed through a reel that cuts out individual round discs called blanks. 2. JOHN’S VOICE How they are punched out of sheet metal. ON AN UPSETTING MILL -- -- which squeezes the edges of the blanks, giving them a slightly raised surface. JOHN’S VOICE How they are rimmed and beveled. ON A COINING PRESS -- -- which actually engraves the blanks. JOHN’S VOICE How they are stamped and cleaned. FINALLY, ON A PRESS OPERATOR -- -- who uses a magnifying glass to spot-check the new coins. JOHN’S VOICE And then how each and every coin is personally examined, just in case one has slipped through with the slightest imperfection. The operator finds a bad coin and flicks it off the conveyor belt into a waste funnel. The rest of the coins CLATTER off the belt down into an automatic counting machine, while -- MATCH CUT: BACK TO THE DINGY ROOM -- PRESENT DAY -- where spent M-16 rounds CLATTER onto the ground, making the exact same noise. Now all SOUND can be heard, and it is LOUD. Whoever shot John is paying for it dearly. Three other GREEN BERET’S are unloading their ammo. John is still flat on his back, still bleeding profusely, still staring up at the ceiling. JOHN’S VOICE That's what popped into my head. One of the soldiers, Staff Sargeant TONY GALLO, stops firing and turns to John, kneels over him. A vein pops out of his forehead. John desperately tries to make eye contact. 3. JOHN’S VOICE I am a coin in the United States Army. I was minted in the year 1980. I have been punched from sheet metal, I have been stamped and cleaned, my edges have been rimmed and beveled. Tony cuts open John’s fatigues. Blood flows freely. JOHN’S VOICE But now I have two small holes in me, and I am no longer in perfect condition. John looks at his punctured stomach and draws a sharp breath. JOHN’S VOICE I am no longer in perfect condition. He glances up at Tony, sees the panic in his face. JOHN’S VOICE I am no longer in perfect condition. John GULPS for air. His PUPILS begin to DILATE. He’s fading fast. The chaos around him begins to slip away. JOHN’S VOICE So there’s something else I want to tell you before I go. His eyelids flutter. He GASPS again. JOHN’S VOICE After I got shot, right before everything went black, you wanna know the very final thing that entered my mind? And then as John’s eyes finally close -- FADE TO BLACK JOHN’S VOICE You. FADE IN ON: A WAVE -- As it crashes over John, submerging him completely. He closes his eyes. Then his surfboard pops back above water, and because John is on top of it, he pops up too. 4. He is younger now, and he is back in North Carolina. But his head is still shaved. SPRING 2001 Before he can even catch his breath, another wave is coming. John positions himself, paddles into the wave -- stands up -- ON THE SHORE -- he catches a brief glimpse of TWO GIRLS in bikinis as they wade into the water -- -- but there’s not time to focus on them -- he’s caught the wave and rides it towards shore, when all of a sudden -- --another SURFER cuts him off -- John has to wipe out to avoid a collision -- UNDERWATER -- he gets lost in the power of the crashing wave, doesn’t try to fight it, lets himself get dragged to shore -- -- until he can finally find his footing. He stands up in waist high water, angrily yells out to the other surfer -- JOHN Hey! What the hell-- -- then suddenly realizes he’s only a few yards from the girls he saw earlier. One’s BLONDE, the other is BRUNETTE. They’re both knockouts, and they’re both staring at him. The Brunette smiles. BRUNETTE GIRL Nice wave. John wipes the salt out of his mouth. JOHN Shoulda been. The Brunette’s eyes twinkle, but the Blonde rolls hers, tugs at her friend. Although the Brunette allows herself to be pulled away, she smiles back at John before she goes. John watches her disappear down the beach while the surfer that cut John off wades over to him. John is tall and muscular, not somebody to mess with, and this guy knows it. OTHER SURFER Sorry, bro. Didn’t see you there. John turns towards him fast -- the other guy flinches slightly. But John is smiling now, too. JOHN What? Oh -- no problem. 5. Then he climbs on his board and paddles back into the ocean. ON THE PIER -- LATER John leans against the rail, drinking a beer, watching the sun set. His board is next to him. Nearby, he hears GIGGLING -- and when he turns, he sees the same two girls from before walking up the pier. They stop 20 feet away or so, but they don’t see him because of his board. John peeks over at them for a second... thinks... But before he can make a move, TWO GUYS in polo shirts walk up behind the girls. They’re good-looking and loud, each with a beer in hand. The one in the YELLOW SHIRT wraps his arms around the Blonde Girl. They’re clearly a couple. But John’s focused on the Brunette Girl, and he watches with interest as the guy in the BABY BLUE SHIRT hops up easily on the rail next to her-- and knocks her tote bag off the edge. It hits the water with a SPLASH. BRUNETTE GIRL My bag! BLUE SHIRT Whoops. Son of a-- BRUNETTE GIRL My purse is in there. My credit cards, all my cash, everything! BLUE SHIRT I’m really sorry. (off her look) Oh. Should I, um... BRUNETTE GIRL My whole life is in that bag! YELLOW SHIRT You knocked it in, dumbass. Be a man, go save the day. Blue Shirt SIGHS. Then he sits down, ponderously takes off his shoes, carefully stuffs his socks into them. He hesitates... takes a deep breath... looks down at the ocean swirling twenty feet below him... hesitates some more... BRUNETTE GIRL Oh, for crying out loud. John watches the Brunette Girl kick off her own shoes, start to climb up the rail. 6. John grins. And then, without hardly even thinking about it, he sets his beer down, hops the rail, and jumps down into the ocean himself. He dives under -- John is clearly comfortable in water -- and finds the bag on the ocean floor quickly. He reemerges to find the group on the pier staring down at him in astonishment. John just paddles back to shore. The Brunette Girl meets him at the bottom of the pier, all smiles. BRUNETTE GIRL Thank you so much! Blue Shirt trails close behind her. BLUE SHIRT Yeah, thanks. But you really didn’t have to do that, I was just about to jump in... JOHN I know you were. I was just saving you the trouble. He hands the bag to the Brunette. Their fingers brush briefly. BRUNETTE GIRL My name’s Savannah. JOHN I’m John. She and John hold eye contact. Blue Shirt clears his throat. BLUE SHIRT Maybe you should give him a reward. Savannah glares at Blue Shirt. John registers the insult. JOHN I don’t want a reward. I was just trying to help. He nods goodbye to Savannah, turns to leave. JOHN You all have a good night. Then he starts to walk away. But Savannah calls after him. SAVANNAH Wait. She hurries over, alone. Blue and Yellow Shirt trade a look. 7. SAVANNAH I’m staying right over there. We’ve got food, and -- I mean, do you want something to eat? JOHN Thanks, but I should really be getting home.
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